COOPERSTOWN BASEBALL WORLD GAME RULES AND TOURNAMENT GUIDELINES Cooperstown Baseball World uses the Official Rules of Major League Baseball, with the following adaptations and/or modifications. These rules are used at all Adult Baseball tournaments held by Cooperstown Baseball World and have been distributed to all members of the Cooperstown Baseball World Umpires Association. Please note, in case of a protest, the Official Rules of Baseball, supplemented by the CBW modifications, will be the basis for all rules decisions. Rule Addendums: Batter’s Box: When the batter is out of the batter’s box, he may not leave the dirt area around home plate except in the case of a substitution, conference, or equipment problem. The intent of this rule is to keep the game moving along without unnecessary delays. When the batter is in violation of this rule, the umpire will ask the batter to return to the batter’s box and a warning will be issued. There will be one warning per player. If the offending player does not return or if the violation is repeated by that offender, a strike will be called without a pitch being thrown to the batter. Intentional Walks: A hitter may be waived to first base without any pitches being thrown upon the direction of the defensive team manager, pitcher or catcher. Hit Batters: Any pitcher who hits four (4) batters with pitches during a game must be removed from the pitching position. Removal is done immediately upon the 4th batter being hit. He may continue to play offense and defense. Base Safety: • Runners should avoid collisions with defensive players fielding a batted ball (fielders are entitled to the ball, which includes a step-and-reach beyond the point of contact with the ball). • Any player, offensive or defensive, who initiates intentional and/or malicious contact with an opponent shall be called out, if applicable, and be subject to ejection from the game. • Illegal slides will result in the sliding player being called out and being subject to ejection. • A slide may go past the base as long as it is not in the direction of (or makes contact with) the defensive player handling the baseball; any runner who deliberately slides into a defensive player away from a base is out and subject to both an interference call as possible ejection if contact deemed malicious. *An illegal slide is described as any of the following: barrel-rolling, body blocking, sliding with such momentum that it takes the sliding player into a fielder beyond the base, sliding out of the baseline and making contact with defensive player, pop-up slides where a runner initiates contact with the defensive player as well as sliding with spikes above the fielder’s knee. (Offensive players may not hurdle a defensive player) • Catchers may not block home plate without possession of the ball. (Straddling home plate is considered ‘blocking’ the plate. *If an umpire rules obstruction for blocking a base without the ball, the defensive player will be warned; a second warning will result in an ejection. Sportsmanship: Umpires are requested to eject players before, during or after games for any of the following behaviors, considered to be unsportsmanlike: • Consumption of alcoholic beverages during a game. Umpires will eject players who smell of alcohol. • Any threats of physical intimidation of umpires, players or spectators, including any threatening physical contact. • Verbal abuse of umpires, players or spectators, such as profanity, name-calling, belittlement or excessive harassment. • Excessive profanity, defined as profanity that, in the umpire’s judgment, is audible in the stands, dugouts and area surrounding the field of play, regardless of intent. • Throwing of equipment (bats, helmets, gloves, etc.). • Physical fighting Ejections: • Players ejected from a game for misconduct must leave the field of play and the vicinity of the playing field upon gathering their belongings. Any further contact with the umpires, even after the game finishes, could bring possible disqualification from the remainder of the event. • All ejections carry an automatic suspension for the player of the remainder of that game plus the next two games to be played by their team. No exceptions will be made to re-instate the player. Tournament/Camp Guidelines: Cooperstown Baseball World hosts its events on the campus of SUNY-Oneonta University, which is by state law, a dry campus. Therefore the following guidelines are strictly followed regarding the use of alcohol on premises: • Alcoholic beverages are prohibited at the playing sites, before, during and after all games. Playing sites are defined as the playing site itself plus the property owned by the same entity surrounding the playing site. This includes parking lots. Alcohol is also prohibited in and around the dormitories where the teams are lodged. • Any player(s) found in violation of the open-container ordinances at playing sites are subject to immediate removal from the tournament and our facilities. These offenders will not be allowed back onto the property for the remainder of the tournament and are not permitted to play any further games after their offense. Offenders will be removed by the State University Police Department. Tobacco: • Smoking, as well as all other tobacco products are prohibited on or near the field of play, as well as in the dugouts and their immediate area, before, during or after games. Players who wish to smoke must go to the parking lot. • Smoking, as well as all other tobacco products are also prohibited in and around the dormitories where the teams are lodged. Game Guidelines: All games are scheduled for 7 innings unless noted on the schedule. The Tournament Director has discretion to shorten the length of games due to weather or other logistical conditions that are beyond CBW’s control. A 10-run rule will be in effect after 5 innings. (Both teams must have the same number of at-bats, unless the home team is leading.) No new inning will begin after 2 hours and 25 minutes of playing time in a scheduled 7-inning game. Please note: The CBW scorekeepers start the clock on the first pitch. The clock is only stopped for the following reasons: weather suspensions, severe injuries where a player requires medical attention on the field for an extended duration of time and to handle protests. The time limit is used for pool play only. Those games may end in a tie but the actual double elimination tournament games must go until there is a winner. Weather issues: Weather-stopped games are suspended pending the final decision of the tournament director. (Umpires may suspend but cannot declare the game over in weather situations.) Lineup cards: Both managers, at least 10 minutes prior to the start of the game, will give the official scorekeeper and the opposing manager a copy of their lineup, which MUST include: a. First Initial or first and last name. (Last names only are subject to challenge.) b. All players, including all substitutes and relief pitchers, must be listed on the lineup card, even if they are not starting offensively or defensively, to be eligible to play in the game. (If a player is delayed, make sure he is listed so he can play when he arrives.) c. Correct corresponding uniform number. (Incorrect numbers will incur the same penalty as batting out of order, and to challenge, follow the same rules that apply to batting out of order). CBW official scorekeepers will be responsible for lineups during the game to handle eligibility questions, scorebook discrepancies, incorrect numbers, and batting out of order issues. Batting order rules: • The number of hitters in the batting order is optional; Extra Hitters may be used if the team chooses as long as they bat after the first 9 positional players. Additional hitters may be added to the end of the batting order provided that …players are listed on lineup card and players may not have appeared anywhere else in the offensive lineup in a shared position or otherwise. The batting order may not be reduced after the scorekeeper received the lineup. • A team must start a game with 9 players. • If a team begins play with 9-or-more players and all are in the offensive order (therefore, no substitutes available), and a player is forced to leave the game (offensive & defensive lineup) for an injury, no “out” will be declared when that player’s position comes to the plate. However, if the offensive player leaves the lineup for any other reason (i.e., ejection or leaving the playing site), an “out” will be declared for that vacant spot in the batting lineup each time it comes to the plate. Please note: If a player is injured and out of the game, he is removed both offensively and defensively. If an injured player wants to hit in a 9-man scenario, he must also run the bases should he reach safely. • If an injury occurs and there are no substitutes available, the team may continue with only 8 players in the game. A team must have at least 8 players for the game to continue. If the batting or fielding contingent is fewer than 8 at any time, the game is ended with the deficient team forfeiting. • Exception to the automatic out: A game may not end on the automatic out. • As stated in MLB rules, there is no re-entry either offensively or defensively. • Courtesy runners may be used for the catcher or pitcher at any time provided it is someone who is not currently in the line-up at that time. If you are using a 9 man roster with no substitutions, then your team has no one available to be a courtesy runner.